520 History of Lhe Author's 



establishment of a perfect flock, a ram pre-eminent in every point is absolutely 

 inestimable, especially in a breed in which the choice is necessarily confined within 

 such narrow limits. Actuated by similar views, I have at present rams, for which 

 1 would not take twice the sum offered to Mr. Toilet. 



I have hitherto weaned my lambs at once, without any apparent disadvantage 

 either to the dam or the young ; but it has been necessary to milk the ewes twice or 

 thrice afterwards, at the interval of two or three days. 



I have mentioned that most of the Merino rams and their male descendants 

 have long horns, and I have touched on some of the inconveniences of this ap- 

 pendage. According to the Romans, animals so furnished are more quarrelsome 

 than polled sheep, as if from some consciousness of superior capacity of annoy- 

 ance.* This evil in the Merino race is, however, chiefly confined to the rams ; 

 for, as I have before observed, the ewes are hornless ; and so also are many of the 

 wethers, if cut when lambs. With regard, therefore, to the sheep intended for 

 fatting, and the ewes, which are chiefly valuable for the increase of the species, 

 there will usually be none of that waste of food which goes to the supply of a head 

 proportioned to large horns ; and as soon as a flock is become nearly equal in 

 goodness of wool and carcase, a breeder, who is not desirous of keeping many 

 rams for sale, need not, probably, for the mere purpose of improvement, save of 

 his horned sheep more than f of his whole stock. If, however, the entire banish- 

 ment of the horn be desired, I know that it can, in a great measure, be effected by 

 breeding from knot rams. Sir Joseph Banks is attempting this object in the Royal 

 Merino flock. In the Merino-Ryeland it is still less difficult, because the propor- 

 tion of knot rams seems to increase as we breed in and in. Accordingly, of 31 

 ram-lambs saved by me last year, chiefly for their wool, 6 are cither polled, or 

 have short snags, exclusively of 3, which are hornless, and which, by way of ex- 

 periment, were bred from a ram, whose horns and head were unusually light and 

 small. 



In order to diminish the capacity of the horned rams to do mischief, I should 

 advise breeders to follow the practice of the Spaniards, by cutting off with a saw, 

 in the month of October, some inches of the horns of the iambs ; after which, it is 

 convenient to mark ihem, as nearly as possible to the base, with a red-hot iron. The 

 same cutting, and the marking, if necessary, should be repeated the August fol- 

 jowing, so as to leave only 6 or 7 inches towards the root or base. 



• Columellae vii. 3. 



